Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1887-10-22
BAD LUCK CAME
BY op1E P. READ.


serious than when relating his experl-
ence with those mysterious agencies
which beset his pathway; the iondness
with which he hugs his superstitions
leads him into an enthusiastic disregard
of the merest semblance of truth. An
drew Pointer, an old negro who
preached before the war. but who ADAM
boned the pulpit when the polygamous
freedom of the slave received the at
tention of the law, was asked recently
if he really believed in the "trickss
and spells" under which many col
ored people still claim that they are
placed.
@Wall, sah," said ne, II doan b1ebe
much In dem sorter things, case
thinks da's mixed up wild er good deal
o. lgnunce, but I'll tell yer whut's er
skanluss Jack, dar's er good many
things In dis heah atmerphefe dat
KANT ercount fur. Oar is, sab, widout
question, signs dat tells er pusson o.
comm trouble, but 'gardin' de fack o.
de power dat puts 'em in motion, wy,
dat amt fur me ter begin ter say
aYou have had experience in that
line, have you?"
"Wall, think / has, sab, an dar
wuz one ercasion dat amt gWiAe ter
furgit so mighty soon, nuther. wuz
hbin' down yere on de Dryer place.
erbout ten years ago, an suthin' hap
pened ter me down dar dat made me
open my eyes monstrous. / mentions
de fack dat it wuz erbout ten years
ergo ter show yer dat it didn't happen
wen wuz er 'stitious slave, but down
at er time wen I wuz putty nigh ez
well edycated ez is now. I had been
ober ter Unk Nose Parker's one night,
an wuz comm on home putty late,
when I seed suthin' shiny layin' in de
road. I walked up close ter it, did.
an dar laid de finest gold watch an
chain cher seed in my life. 1snatched
it up mighty quick, and says, 'Oh, de
Lawd amt furgittin' His own FOLKS ez
yer go long De moon shined so dat
it wuz almos' ez bright ez day, an I
hip de watch in my ham while l cut
some mighty fine capers wild my
feet. Putty soon-now lissun, fur it's
jest like I tells yer-putty soon de
watch 'gunter git warm, an de fust
thing knowed it had dun got 30 hot
l couldn' hold it, but had ter drsp it
on de groun', an den, fore de Lawd,
de blame thing tuck arter me, de watch
goin' fust an de chain wigglin' erlong
Ike or snake. I hollered, did.
couldn' hep it, fur wuz skeered putty
nigh ter death, fur it wuz new ter me
ter see er watch an chain chasin' er
pusson in er recklesome way like dat
Wen I had dun run erbout er hat or
mile, I looked 'roun', an dar come de
watch an chain. I seed dat want
gwine ter do, en- de idee struck me dat
i better climb er tree, an bout dat
time I come ter er tree, an up
went. I elm mighty nigh ter de top,
an den looked down, an dar come de
watch an chain, er jumpin' frum one
limb ter ernuder. 'Mussyful heabensp
thinks I, dis amt gwine ter do.
Look out! doan yer come up heah!
Doan yer do it, tells yerp but dar
come de watch an chain. By dis time /
wuz awful skeered, fur jes' knowed
dat eft dat watch got up to war wuz
it gwine to burn hole through me,
sho'. Oar want but one thing ter do,
an / done it. I jes' turned loose all
hollis an drapped down outen dat tree,
an TO de Lawd, ez l went down
through de limbs I thought never
gwine to hit de face O. de yerth. But
1 did after while, an wen l looked up
dar come de watch an chain. jumped
up and took to my heels ag'in, through
de briars an oher de logs, but at cherry
Jump [ could hear dat watch an chain
rattlin' just behind me. Wall, sab, !
ies' run till / nachully drapped, an
didn't know nothin' mo- till erbout sun
rise. Den I got up, thinkin' dat de
whole thing wuz er dream, an went
home"
SWELL, but what did all that amount
to, Andy?"
ut wuz er warnin' sab.
"A warning of what?"
watch in de road I oughter walked
straddle @ it widout techin' it an den
tuck de neardest shoot fur home.'
did bad luck follow?"
wall, vas, sab, 'peared like it did.
De next day some white men come ter
my house, an says one. ANDY, Mr..
Baxter has lost his watch. Hsb yer
seed anything O it?'
@'How I gwineter see itp says L
"'Wall, says he, Mr.. Baxter claims
dat somebody tuck it often his mantel
piece at his sto', do udder day, an ez
we'se roup' s'archin' everybody reckon
we mout ez we'll s'arch you, an, sab.
de fust thing [ knowed da had dun
whipped er watch an chain outen my
pocket. Dat watch, wen / fell down,
had crawled in dar, an didn' know
nuthin' erbout it. told de ledge an
all de folks at de trial jes' how it wuz,
an offered ter take 'em ter de place
war found de blame watch layin' in
de road, but da waz too pig-headed ter
hab any reason erbout 'em, so da sont
me ter de penitenchy fur five years.
Shortly arter got out er ole cullud
gcnerman dat knows all erbout SIGH
matters tole me eff hadn't er toch de
time piece wen foun' it in de road,
dar wouldn't er been no trouble. Vas,
sah II 'peared like luck sortAr venf